Apparatus for delivering air to a blast furnace



July 14,; 1970 ZIMMERMANN 3,520,525

APPARATUS FOR DELIVERING AIR TO A BLAST FURNACE Filed Nov. 15, 1967INVENTOR. P055197 E. Z/MMEAMAA/N United States Patent 3,520,525APPARATUS FOR DELIVERING AIR TO A BLAST FURNACE Robert E. Zimmermann,Pittsburgh, Pa., assignor to Koppers Company, Inc., a corporation ofDelaware Filed Nov. 15, 1967, Ser. No. 683,326 Int. C1. C21!) 7/16 US.Cl. 26641 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Apparatus for delivering airfrom a bustle pipe to the tuyeres of a blast furnace comprises an elbowthat has an end with a plurality of arms that cooperate with a bridleassembly and a face plate to which is mounted a sealing ring of materialthat is conformable to the rounded end of a blowpipe extending between,and cooperating with, the sealing ring and the tuyere. A plurality ofspring biased bridles exert a force on the blowpipe to frictionally holdit in position. The blowpipe has a refractory lining and a plurality oflongitudinally extending external fins that dissipate heat.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION In the blast furnace process, heated orblast air is carried in a bustle pipe that surrounds the bosh section ofthe furnace, and the blast air is conveyed into the furnace through aplurality of conduit assemblies which comprise a gooseneck tuyerestock,a blowpipe and a tuyere. The blowpipe comprises a length of refractorylined tubing that abuts the tuyerestock at one end and the tuyere at theother end.

Heretofore, it has been difficult to obtain a tight seal at each end ofthe blowpipe, and particularly at the end where the blowpipe cooperateswith the tuyerestock. In some applications, the blowpipe has beenspherically machined to fit a corresponding end of the tuyere and thetuyerestock. But, reliance upon a machined joint to obtain a gastightfit and seal has not been entirely satisfactory. In many instances, thetuyerestock ends become damaged during handling or while the blowpipe isin storage, and they do not make a proper seal with the tuyerestock.

However, the present invention discloses apparatus for delivering air toa blast furnace that overcomes the disadvantages in the prior art.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The invention comprises a tuyerestock elbowconnected to a bustle pipe and a face plate mounted to the tuyerestockelbow which supports a sealing ring that is conformable to the roundedend of a blowpipe extending be tween the face plate and a tuyere in thewall of the furnace. The sealing ring is hollow and fluid cooled, or issolid material. The blowpipe has external longitudinal fins that provideadditional radiating surface to maintain the blowpipe cool.

For a further understanding of the invention and for advantages andfeatures thereof, reference may be made to the following description inconjunction with the accompanying drawing which shows for the purpose ofexemplification embodiments of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING In the drawing:

FIG. 1 is a schematic elevational view of apparatus for delivering airto a blast furnace in accordance with the invention;

FIG. 2 is a sectional view shoWing details of one end of the blowpipeand tuyerestock elbow of FIG. 1;

3,520,525 Patented July 14, 1970 FIG. 3 is a view along line IIIIII ofFIG. 2, showing a seal ring in accordance with one embodiment of theinvention; and

FIG. 4 is a sectional view similar to FIG. 2 showing a seal ring inaccordance with another embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION FIG. 1 illustrates apparatus for delivering air toa blast furnace in accordance with the invention that comprises ablowpipe 11 situated between a furnace tuyere 13 and a tuyerestock elbow15. Each of the furnace tuyeres 13 occupies a position at the inner end(the end nearest the furnace centerline) of a cooler casting 17 set intothe furnace wall 19. The tuyerestock 15 is connected in a conventionalmanner to conduit 21 communicating with a bustle pipe (not shown) thatsurrounds the furnace and in which heated air flows.

The blowpipe 11 is comprised of a generally cylindrical envelope orshell 23 that is lined with a suitable refractory material 25. The steeltube or envelope 23 has a plurality of longitudinally extending andoutwardly projecting fins 27 that provide additional radiating surfaceon the envelope to dissipate heat to the ambient air.

The end of the blowpipe 11 that is adjacent the tuyerestock 15 isrounded, as shown at 26 in FIG. 2, and abuts a hollow, generallycircular seal ring 29, shown in FIG. 3. Preferably, both ends of theblowpipe 11 are alike; that is, both ends are rounded as at 26 so thateither end may abut and cooperate with the sealing ring 29. The sealring 29 may be comprised of a suitable metal, such as Monel, bronze,copper, wrought iron, or the hollow seal ring may be a metal tubecovered on the outside with hard asbestos, or stainless steel wireinserted in hard asbestos. The seal ring 29 is provided with an inletconduit 31 and an outlet conduit 33, whereby cooling fluid can enter,flow through the tubular seal ring, and flow therefrom.

The seal ring 29 fits into a groove 35 provided in a face plate 37 whichis suitably fastened, as by bolts 39, to the tuyerestock 15. A notch 41is provided in the periphery of the face plate at a convenient locationaround the periphery of the face plate to accommodate the bossingportion of the seal ring, where the inlet 31 and the outlet 33 conduitsare connected to the seal ring 29. Preferably, the groove 35 is so madethat the seal ring is deformed slightly, or is pinched as it were, sothat the seal ring 29 is held frictionally in position in the groove 35.

The embodiment of the invention illustrated in FIG. 4 differs onlyslightly from the embodiment of the invention of FIG. 2. In FIG. 4, theblowpipe 11 abuts a solid metal seal ring 43 which may be made of softcopper or any other suitable metal, and the seal ring 43 has threads 45that cooperate with threads on the face plate 47 to hold and secure theseal ring 43 in position. Preferably, the seal ring 43 has a taperedsurface that is readily deformable and conformable to the rounded end 26of the blowpipe 11.

Instead of using a conventional tuyerestock, having a single bridle atthe bottom and a safety hook at the top, the invention provides atuyerestock with three each equiangularly spaced, outwardly extendingarms 49, that have a U-shaped slot therein. The arms 49 cooperate withsprings 53, biasing bridle bolts 59 that are pivotally connected toclips 57 welded to the steel portion of the furnace wall 19. Thus, thepressure exerted by the springbiased bridles of the invention on theface plate and ultimately on the blowpipe 11 is more uniformlydistributed than the single bridle arrangement of the prior art. Thepressure on the seal ring 29 is not exerted only at the bottom of theface plate, as in the prior art apparatus.

When assembling the blowpipe 11 in a blast furnace, the blowpipe isplaced between the tuyere 13 and the tuyerestock face plate so that therounded end of the blowpipe abuts and seals against one of the sealrings. The blowpipe is maintained in position by the frictional forceresulting from the pressure exerted by the bridles on the face plate.

A feature of the invention is that the blowplpe has rounded ends thatare adapted to cooperate with a deformable seal supported by the tuyereface plate. By being double ended, the blowpipe effectively seals aganst the tuyere and against the seal ring with equal effectiveness.

A feature of the invention is the tuyerestock elbow with its threeequi-angularly spaced arms that cooperate each with a bridle. The threebridles exert a more uniform pressure on the tuyerestock face platewhich in turn exerts more uniform sealing pressure on the seal ring andthe cooperating end of the blowpipe.

A feature of the invention is that the sealing ring is hollow and that afiuid circulating therein cools the seal ring and the adjacentunprotected metal parts of the face plate 37 and envelope 23.

A feature of the invention is that the face plate has a groove which isadapted to coperate with the seal ring and frictionally engage the same,whereby the seal ring is held in position even when no pressure isapplied against it.

A feature of the invention is the longitudinally extending outwardlyprojecting fins on the external surface of the blowpipe that providemore radiating surface whereby the blowpipe is cooler and is notsubjected to heat and mechanical distortion. Further, the blowpipe isless likely to suffer rupture by cracking.

Although the invention has been described herein with a certain degreeof particularity, it is understood that the present disclosure has beenmade only as an example and that the scope of the invention is definedby what is hereinafter claimed.

What is claimed is:

1. In apparatus for delivering air from a bustle pipe conduit to thetuyeres of a blast furnace, the improvement comprising:

(a) a tuyerestock elbow connecting to said conduit and terminating in anend spaced apart from said tuyere;

(-b) a face plate having a groove therein mounted to the end of saidelbow;

(c) a tubular blowpipe having rounded ends and a plurality of outwardlyprojecting longitudinally extending fins on the external surface thereofdisposed between and cooperating with said tuyere and said face plate;

((1) a sealing member supported in the groove of said face plate betweenan end of said blowpipe and said face plate that is conformable to theend of said blowpipe to seal against leakage of air from said elbow andblowpipe;

(e) at least three arms equi-angularly spaced around and projectingoutwardly from the periphery of said tuyerestock elbow;

(f) a resiliently biased member connecting each said arm and said blastfurnace, urging said sealing member into intimate sealing contact withthe end of said blowpipe; and

(g) means for maintaining said blowpipe in position.

2. The invention of claim 1 wherein:

(a) said sealing member is hollow and fluid conductive.

3. In apparatus for delivering air from a bustle pipe to the tuyeres ofa blast furnace, the improvement comprising:

(a) a tuyerestock elbow connecting to said conduit and terminating in anend spaced apart from said tuyere;

(b) at least three arms equi-angularly spaced around and projectingoutwardly from the periphery of said tuyerestock elbow;

(c) a face plate mounted to the end of said elbow, said face platehaving a groove in the face thereof;

((1) a blowpipe connecting said tuyere and said face plate, saidblowpipe including (i) a tubular envelope having partially rounded ends,

(ii) a refractory lining within said envelope, and

(iii) a plurality of fins projecting outwardly from and extendinglongitudinally of said envelope,

(e) a sealing member supported in the groove of said face plate andcooperating with an end of said blowpipe, said sealing member beingconformable to the end of said blowpipe to seal against leakage of airfrom said elbow and blowpipe; and

(f) a resiliently biased member connecting each said arm and said blastfurnace urging said sealing member into intimate sealing contact withthe end of said blowpipe.

4. The invention of claim 3 wherein:

'( a) said sealing member is hollow and fluid conductive.

5. In apparatus for delivering air from a bustle pipe conduit to thetuyeres of a blast furnace, the improvement comprising:

(a) A tuyerestock elbow connecting to said conduit and terminating in anend spaced apart from said tuyere;

(b) A face plate mounted to the end of said elbow;

(c) a tubular blowpipe having rounded ends and a plurality of outwardlyprojecting longitudinally extending fins on the external surface thereofdisposed between and cooperating with said tuyere and said face plate;

((1) a sealing member threadedly engaging said face plate and disposedbetween an end of said blowpipe and said face plate, said sealing memberbeing readily deformable metal that is conformable to the end of saidblowpipe to seal against leakage of air from said elbow and blowpipe;

(e) at least three arms equi-angularly spaced around and projectingoutwardly from the periphery of said tuyerestock elbow;

(f) a resiliently biased member connecting each said arm and said blastfurnace, urging said sealing member into intimate sealing contact withthe end of said blowpipe; and

(g) means for maintaining said blowpipe in position.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,844,194 2/1932 Von Maltitz266-30 1,847,835 3/1932 Jordan 266-41 X 3,088,725 5/1963 Hall 266-413,255,734 6/1966 ONeill 122-6.6 3,281,135 10/1966 Boron 266-41 X I.SPENCER OVERHOLSER, Primary Examiner J. S. BROWN, Assistant Examiner US.Cl. X.R. 122-66

